Wednesday 20 January 2010

My Antonia (Cather)

Cather is an author I have got around to reading solely because of the VVV challenge, and what a wonderful author she is. I have really enjoyed the other two novels I have read by her, and was looking forward to reading My Antonia, which is perhaps her most well known novel so when I spotted a lovely old green edition in Oxfam I snapped it up.

My Antonia has the feel of The little house on the prairie to it, giving a wonderful insight into many aspects of pioneer life. The story is told by Jim Burden; aged 10 and recently orphaned, he moves to live with his grandparents in Nebraska, and much of the book is about his experience of the different way of life. He meets Antonia, a 14-year old Bohemian who has recently moved with her parents to the USA. Their friendship forms the basis for the book and runs through it. Jim teaches Antonia to read and right but her education is suddenly cut short when her father commits suicide and she is forced to go out to work.

I thought this book was incredibly vivid and can see why this book has been described as a classic. An absolute VMC must-read.

This book has been published four times by Virago. I picked up a copy of the earliest edition which I think has my favourite cover of the four.

8 comments:

  1. Love the second cover from top. I haven't read this but rarely find green Viragos in the used bookshops around here. I saw a few and meant to ask you about them but now I've forgotten the authors and titles!

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  2. I want to read this - Willa Cather is a remarkable writer. One to check out from the library I think!

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  3. My Antonia is another one of those books that's required school reading here. But, unlike so many of those, almost everybody loves it. It's just such a beautiful book.

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  4. I adore Willa Cather. So glad you liked My Antonia. The third cover you've pictured is my favourite. It's how I imagine Antonia Shimerda must have looked.

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  5. I loved My Antonia when I read it at Uni; I have the bottom cover, which I think is lovely (well before I was aware of the green anyway).

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  6. I love the fact that everyone likes different covers - I think I'd have to go with PBKR Claire and say that I love the bottom one.

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  7. Maybe my favourite is Song of the Lark, which has so many wonderful bits about creativity (in the main character's case, music), but that could also be because it's the first of her novels that I had read. I'm glad to know that I still have about half of them ahead of me. It's so interesting that each of the covers here has a champion of sorts in the reader's comments!

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  8. BIP - I shall look forward to reading that one!

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